Wire chain



Jan. 12,1932. I s SAMUELSQN 1,840,605

WIRE CHAIN Filed March 9, 1931 INVENTOR Ja/m e/ Jemw/mv AT 0 FINE Patented Jan. 12, 1932 barren STATES PATENT OFFICE SAMUEL SAMUELSON, 0F CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIG-NOR TO THE CHAIN PRODUCTS COM- PAINY, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO WIRE CHAIN Application filed March 9,

This invention relates to wire chain of the general form shown in the prior patents to Brown 955,129, April 19, 1910, and Edeburn 1,211,421, January 9, 1917.

The objects of the invention are to improve the form and arrangement of the wire to more effectively prevent unlocking or escape of the interlocked free ends of the wire in the finished links and to so bend and lay the wire in the bent loop as to distribute its bearing areas symmetrically to the central plane, whereby the chain lies flat with stability on a flat surface and tracks properly over pulleys without liability to twist or turn.

Further objects of the invention are in part obvious and in part will appear more in detail hereinafter.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a plan View of a formed chain link blank ready for bending; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the completed link; Fig. 3v is an edge view thereof; Fig. 4 is a perspective view of two consecutive interlooped links if the finished chain; Fig. 5 is a sectional plan View on the line 55, Fig. 3; Fig. 6 is a sectional elevation on the line 66, Fig. 3; Fig. 7 is a section on the line 77, Fig. 3; Fig. 8 is a similar section illustrating a prior construction; Fig. 9 is an end view from the left in Fig. 8; Fig. 10 is a perspective view, on a larger scale, illustrating the formed end of the wire; and Fig. 11 illustrates the action of the wire ends when the chain is under strain.

As in the prior patents referred to, the links of the present chain are each formed from a strip of wire, usually, although not necessarily, of more or less ribbon form, the two free end portions 1 of the wire being bent laterally in the plane of the flat ribbon and then back upon the intermediate portion 2 so that parts 3 of the end portions 1 lie side by side and superposed upon the intermediate portion 2. The terminals of the overlapping portions 3 are also bent laterally in the plane of the wire in more or less zig-zag form so that the terminal 4 of each end portion lies upon or overlaps the other end portion. Blanks so formed are successively produced and are added one by one to the chain being formed by threading a flat blank of the 1931. Serial No. 521,159.

form shown in Fig. 1 through the superposed twin eyes 5 of the previously formed and attached chain link and then bending the flat blank about a transverse axis at its middle so as to form the rounded loop generally indicated at 6. This bending operation of course occurs not only at the center of the intermediate portion 2 but also where the parts 8 of the end portions lie in side by side relation. The result of the bending operation is, therefore, to more or less interlock the terminal portions 4 in two different planes.

Speaking of the illustration, Fig. 1, for convenience the plane of the paper of the drawings may be called the flatwise plane, because the ribbon metal of the blank may be projected fiatwise upon it, while a plane perpendicular to the paper and extending longitudinally of the blank may be called the edgewise plane, because the fiat ribbon of the blank may be projected edgewise upon it. Lookin at Fig. 1 and considering symmetry of the blank about the central edgewise plane, it will be observed that the two terminal portions have been crossed, as it were, with reference to the edgewise plane. In other words, each end portion 1 intersects the edgewise plane, the major part of the por tion 1 lying on one side of said plane and its terminal portion on the other. lVhen the blank is bent to form the loop 6 another crossing of the end portions 1 occurs. In other words, they become crossed in the edgewise direction, or with reference to the flatwise plane, as shown in Fig. 3. This is the same double crossing of the terminal portions that to some extent is accomplished in the aforesaid Edeburn patent, although in said patent the crossing in the flatwise direction, seen in Fig. 3 of the present drawings, is not complete, but the terminals are merely brought into edgewise side by side relation.

In these chains, with the terminal portions of the free ends interlocked, when the chain is put under longitudinal strain there is a tendency for the terminal portions to escape from each other by becoming uncrossed in both flatwise and edgewise directions. This object I overcome in very large measure in w-cause in the finished link the originally diage 10, which shows the metal of the flat ribbon more or less compressed from edge to edge so as to produce a terminal which is thick ened 1n the edgewlse direction, g1v1ng t an increased dimension at its extreme end along a vertical line in Fig. 10, as shown atA; 7

Of course, these chainsare usually made in rather small sizes of wire, the wire being, for

example, th of'an inch or soin width and nd of an inch in thickness, so that with the tools commonly employed for cutting and forn'iing this wire fine accuracy of workmanship isimpractical, but the operation will be carried out in such manner as to appreciably thicken the wire. As a result, when the two terminal portions are cross-ed edgewise in the completed link, as shown in Fig. 3, the thickened terminal portions 4 along the edgewise plane is greater than the distance between the-neighboring portions B of the wire forming the closed twin eyes 5. The consequence is that when the chain is put under longitudinalstrain, the two terminal portions of the wire move up and down in Fig. 3 toward the portions B of the wire, which they contact within the position shown in Fig. 11. In this position, however, the two swaged terminal portions 4: still overlap each other when viewed edgewise, so that they cannot pass each other along the flatwise plane. As a result, the two terminal p rtions of the wire are more completely and thoroughly interlocked, so that under longitudinal strain the liability is'reduced of these free end portions esca ai'n and ro'ectim out ed ewise from b O D the rounded loops with the consequent objections to such action.

In addition, difliculty is experienced with these wire chains when used in certain ways, such as for the suspension of sash weights, by reason of the tendency of the chain to twist or tilt when running over a pulley. This action, which is prevented by the present construction, is best illustratedby comonal intermediate portion 2 of the original blank extends from one side of one eye 5 to the opposite side of the other eye. In other words, it is still diagonal, and where this crossing intermediate portion presents its surface as a part of the bearing surface of the chain as a whole, it is unsymmetrically located at one side of the central edgewise plane. By bearing surface of the chain as whole I meanthe surface-which is pre sentedto a table when a chain rests upon it as 1n F 1g. 4 or, 1n other words, the surface which is presented to a pulley when the chain tracks over a pulley.

Such tendency to twist, in the prior chains ofthis type, I avoid by-sp'ecial-form or configuration of-those portions of thewire which form: the rounded loops, and particularly those portions which are presented at the op positely disposed bearing surfaces, one on each face of the-chain. Ateach bearing surface are presented side by side the flat surface of the original diagonal crossing part 2 and a like surface of one ofthe parts 3 of the free end portions-1, as shown in Figs. (3, 7 and 9. This is accomplished, in effect, by so bending, turning or forming the wire that the two parts are offset from each other in the edgewise plane, the crossingpart 2 lying in the recesses thereby produced at the sides of parts 2.

With this arrangement, the chain as a whole has its two bearing surfaces spread out or disposed symmetrically at the two sides of the central edgewise plane so that it tracks squarely on pulleys without tendency to twist or turn.

lVhat I claim is 1. Achain link," comprising a sectionof wire bent to form superposed twin eyes at one end-and a rounded loop at the other-end, the terminal portions ofthe wire extending past eachother'and lying side by side within said loop and being thickened to prevent their escape past" each other.

2. A 'chainlink, comprising: a section of wire bent to form-superposedtwineyes at one end and a round loopat the other end, therounded loop including terminalportions of the wire extending past-each other in side byside relation and being offset in the censignature.

SAMUEL SAMUELSONL-v 

